Brink of Extinction
by Lucy Labrador
Summary: In a dark future where there are no plants seen for miles, it's hard to enjoy the Christmas tradition of kissing under the Mistletoe. Silvaze.


**Written for the Kelviniana forum Mistletoe challenge.**

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Silver stood atop a large skyscraper in Crisis City. There was a problem that seemed impossible to solve. It was nearly Christmas, a tradition that was dying out in this future. There was also something else that had died out that was an important element to the holiday, mistletoe.

When Silver and Blaze went to the past to meet Sonic and Co, they spent a short winter holiday with them to experience the cultures that had nearly reached extinction in their time. Few people celebrated Christmas in the 2200s but in the 21st century, it was present for over a month each year.

The tradition that brought the beloved cat and hedgehog together, was kissing under the mistletoe, something that Blaze took a liking too. The sparkle in her eyes when she saw the plant and was told about the tradition and the passionate kiss that her and Silver had, was something that the colourless hedgehog never forgot.

The snow that fell during their visit was also a perk that the couple enjoyed but Silver knew that he wouldn't be able to get it to snow. However, he could always try and find some mistletoe. Hardly anyone he knew heard of it, the youths had no idea what the plant was and the elderly had heard of it and said it was extinct.

Blaze had already gone out once before and Silver could tell that it was to get something special for him by the way that she was so secretive about it. This made him even more determined to get her those leaves for Christmas.

The white hedgehog drifted down onto a lower surface and began to ponder about how he was going to get that mistletoe that he needed. Surely there was a land that was even remotely green enough to grow the plant. He didn't even need a whole plant, he just needed a few leaves, enough to hang up somewhere Blaze would see it. Silver began to run in the direction he was already facing.

"Silver, where are you going?" he heard a friendly voice ask and turned around to see Blaze.

"Out to get something, I won't be long," Silver lied, he knew that this could take a long time, it could even take days.

"Are you sure you don't want me to come with you, I know how clumsy you can be, Silver," Blaze said sternly and stepped forward.

"No, no. I'll be fine. I'm not going far," Silver exclaimed, feeling the pressure increase, he knew Blaze was hard to convince. The purple cat gave a suspicious look and nodded.

"Okay, but come back in one piece. Avoid getting ambushed by Iblis, you can't fight him alone," She ordered and went back into the small shelter inside of the crumbling skyscraper.

"I'll be fine," Silver whispered to himself and headed off to find what he needed.

Silver treaded carefully while fully aware of his surroundings. As he went further south it became darker because the amount of glowing light from the lava was diminishing.

"Why didn't I think to come here before, it's a lot safer. Maybe there's a chance," Silver said to himself hopefully. It was several hours since he had left Blaze but he didn't want to give up. He'd left his surroundings of lava and skyscrapers and reached a barren land of fallen rubble. The wary hedgehog squinted his eyes to see better, becoming more worried about the danger in his surroundings. There was no Iblis but he didn't know what was out there, and there was a natural fear of the unknown within him.

There was still a long way to go and was no sign of greenery yet, only ashes and broken scenery. This made Silver a little less hopeful. "If I've come this far and there's no sign of any plants, how will I ever find the specific plant that I want?" he asked himself. "I don't even know where or how it grows, it might not even grow in this area."

Baring this in mind, Silver sighed and turned around to go back home but the image of Blaze's smile came back to mind and he felt his confidence flooding back. "I need to get that mistletoe!" he cried out and sprinted ahead at full speed.

Finally, in the distance he saw a faint blob of green, he was getting there! It was going to take him a while before he reached it but the hedgehog knew that he had made progress. It only took one last long sprint to reach it. This looked like the remainders of Soleanna forest, Silver knew this because of his visit to the past. Looking up, he found a diminishing mistletoe bush growing around the branches of a tree. Using his telekinesis he hovered up to it and took a handful.

"I have it!" Silver said ecstatically and dropped down again. He wished he had taken some kind of object to contain it in, he had to be quick and make sure it didn't rot in his hand before he got back. Now for the long journey home.

The walk home seemed to take less time in Silver's mind because of his peace of thought he felt after he'd gotten what he needed, then the realisation. He was reaching the edge of Crisis City, the place he was most likely to get attacked by Iblis. He couldn't possibly fight and protect the mistletoe. He needed to hurry and avoid that monster.

As the white hedgehog glided over a pool of lava near his home, the giant monstrosity known as Iblis shot up out of the large lake of magma below him. Silver felt the heat scorch his skin and fur as he was catapulted back onto the hard ground. In a panic, he looked at his mistletoe, a bit squashed from being in his fist during the attack but still in tact. Silver used his free hand to shoot pieces of rock and rubble at Iblis with his powers, in a feeble attempt to defeat him without losing the mistletoe.

One hand wasn't enough and he was hit by a molten piece of rock and plummeted backwards, landing on his stomach. His heart stopped for a second as he looked behind him to see the mistletoe fall into the drop at the back of him.

"NO!" Silver cried out exasperatedly. Watching it fall felt like it lasted for a life time. On the floor, burnt and injured, Silver was vulnerable and open to Iblis' attacks. The molten creature was about to spit more flame attacks at him but keeled over in pain before it could. The creature dived in under the surface of the lava pool and again and left Silver alone.

But not completely alone.

"Silver… I told you to come back in one piece!" Blaze yelled from the other side of the lake of lava. The scorched hedgehog felt even more afraid than before.

"I am in one piece… I'm just a little burnt," Silver defended feebly. Blaze jumped over to the area Silver was laying on and helped him up.

"What were you even doing out here?" Blaze asked sternly as she pulled him up to his feet.

"It doesn't matter… I've failed now anyway," Silver sighed sadly and looked to the lava pool behind him.

"Well, since you've failed it's worth telling me anyway," Blaze said. Silver sighed again.

"I… tried to get some mistletoe for you… but now it's down there," Silver said sadly and motioned his head towards the drop. Blaze gave a warm smile.

"Silver, that's so sweet of you, I know just how hard that is to find," Blaze said strongly. Silver cocked his head in confusion, what did she mean when she said she knew 'just how hard' it is to find? "Come home with me, I have something to show you."

Silver limped and Blaze helped him, they got to their shelter and walked through the door, into the dark room where a candle was lit. Silver stood in the middle of the room while Blaze went to the corner where a small set of drawers were. From inside of them, she took out a small box, and walked over to Silver then took off the cardboard lid. "I was going to wait until the 25th but…"

The white hedgehog couldn't believe it. "Blaze! How did you-?"

"I was better equipped than you, and not so foolish. I brought a friend of mine to help me," Blaze explained wisely as she took out the fresh looking mistletoe from the box and hung it up on the low ceiling above them. "Merry Christmas, Silver," she said warmly and pulled him in for that long awaited Christmas kiss.

**Lucy Labrador**


End file.
